The Ice Dream Cookbook: A review and an adoption fundraiser

Rachel Albert-Matesz: Wherever you are, please take a bow. I love your gluten-free and casein-free cookbook, and I apologize for my tardy book review. And many, many, many thanks for the donation to the Adoption Fundraiser. Your book is on sale nowand will make an incredible holiday gift for someone soon, I’m sure!
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Have you all seen this great book? It’s titled “The Ice Dream Cookbook: Dairy Free alternatives with gluten free cookies, compotes, and sauces“. And oh baby, those sauces! YUM!

Rachel’s cookbook is great for a number of reasons. First, she presents some very user-friendly, non-gourmet chef friendly recipes that are easy to make and delicious to boot. I’m quite the fan of her Chai Tea Ice Dream, to be honest…. and I have some serious plans to make the Basil Ice Dream or the Ginger Ice Dream too. The recipes peaked my interest with the unique flavor profiles and easy to get ingredients. And Basil Ice “Cream”? Huh. I gotta know what that tastes like!

Her recipes for Ice “Dreams” (aka GF/CF ice cream) include basic flavors (vanilla, chocolate chip, maple pecan, cinnamon, etc), some not-so-basic (Basil, Ginger, Lemon Cookie Crumble, Rum Raisin, etc), and many, many others (like the Chai Tea I mentioned, as well as Coffee, Peanut Butter and Jelly, Cherry Vanilla, Mango-Orange, etc). Really – the list goes ON and ON. To make it even more fun, Rachel includes several different variations on the recipes. There are several suggestions and ideas shared with each.

The introduction to her book includes a great overview of the essential ingredients as well as shopping tips for following the Dairy-Free and Gluten-Free diet. I found her tips to be straight forward and refreshingly presented. (And yes, I read the tips in the cookbooks. ESPECIALLY the gluten-free ones just to be sure the author and I are on the same page as far as practice.) She also does a great job of highlighting the necessary equipment and essential techniques for perfecting her recipes. In all, Rachel spends the first 50 pages of the book (it is 278 pages packed with goodness!) reviewing tips and generalities that you experienced GF/CF people will appreciate reviewing and newbies will LOVE the way it is simply presented.

Beyond Ice “Dreams”, Rachel has several sauce recipes. She includes recipes for GF/CF Caramel Sauce, Hot Fudge Sauce, Caffeine-Free Hot Cocoa Mocha Sauce… and my favorite: The Raspberry Sauce that has topped my weekend waffles for a while now. She also includes 16 or so GF/CF other dessert ideas (like pralines, brownies, ice dream sandwich cookies, No-bake cookie pie crust (I’m dying to try that one!), and a Coconut Macaroon Ice Dream Cake).

If you get the chance to check this out, please do.

Even better, if the book interests you, please take a moment to bid on it for our adoption fundraiser. (The book is on sale on eBay now through November 26 at 1:00 PST.) ALL proceeds from the book sale go toward our adoption fund.

Shortly, I will have a few more items up on eBay for our fundraiser as well. Included will be a signed copy of the Gluten-Free Girl’s book as well. (Thank you, Shauna!) Please keep your eyes peeled! You might just find the best GF/CF Christmas/Holiday present yet listed on eBay by me!)

Thank you, Rachel! And Thank you, Readers, for checking out our eBay listing for this book/fundraiser!-Kate

5 comments on “The Ice Dream Cookbook: A review and an adoption fundraiser”

One of my biggest problems with making ice cream or any variant of it is needing an ice cream maker. The last thing we need is another kitchen appliance. Are there recipes/suggestions for making these recipes without a machine, or is that one of the major requirements?

Great question!
The recipes I have tried do require an ice cream maker of some sort. I have a small 1.5 quart maker that I can freeze the inside to and then churn the ice cream after it is cooled. The other equipment? A blender and the stove top/pot.
Nothing too extraordinary!
-Kate

The frozen dessert recipes won’t come out well without an ice cream maker. If you enjoy frozen desserts, you can make my frozen dessert recipes for half of what you’d pay in a store for preservative-free, agave-sweetened, coconut-based frozen dessert. They’re so delicious…. Maybe you can oust some other kitchen tool to make room for an ice cream maker.

That said, there are plenty of other non-frozen dessert recipes in this book, including cookies, cooked fruit desserts, and delicious sauces you can serve over fruit or baked goods.

I recently saw Rachel at a conference I attended. She demonstrated some fabulous recipes! Her Ice Dream Cookbook is a favorite of mine. I also recommend her other book, “The Garden of Eating”. Not only does it contain more wonderful recipes, but some valuable information, as well.